I call this Greek Salad Pasta because it includes the main ingredients of a Greek Salad. They are lightly cooked and then mixed with hot pasta and peppery rocket to make a really satisfying dish. It is one of those quick, throw together dinners which are ideal for when I get back home in the evening.
If I know I’m going to be in a hurry, I chop the olives and tomatoes earlier in the day. They’ll sit quite happily in covered bowls in the fridge. That way by the time the pasta has cooked, everything else is ready to mix together and serve.
The mix of carbs and protein in this dish make it a good recovery meal when eaten in the first 2 hours after exercise.
I’m using regular white pasta in this, feel free to swap it out for wholewheat pasta if you prefer. It’s a good idea to taste one of the cherry tomatoes before you start cooking. Depending on how sweet they are, you might want to add a little sugar when you add them to the pan.
Greek Salad Pasta (serves 4)
360g fusilli pasta
2 tbsp rapeseed oil
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
100g pitted black olives, roughly chopped
1/2 lemon
20 cherry tomatoes, halved
1tsp oregano
125g feta cheese
3 handfuls rocket
Boil a large pan of salted water, and cook the pasta according to the packet
Heat a pan over a medium heat, add the oil, onion and garlic. Cook for 4-5 minutes until the onion has softened, but do not let the garlic brown.
Stir in the chopped olives and tomatoes and the oregano, then squeeze over lemon juice. If your tomatoes aren’t perfectly sweet, this is where you could add a pinch of sugar to them.
Cook until heated through, which should take 2-3 minutes, then take the pan off the heat.
When the pasta is cooked, drain it and toss with tomato mixture. Crumble in the feta cheese, and then allow the pasta to sit for a few minutes. This sauce tastes even better if you eat it warm rather than piping hot.
Just before eating, mix in the rocket.